Hi Genevieve, Lower Choptank Hundred encompassed all of what would be included in today's 4th, 5th, 8th, and part of the 3rd districts of Caroline Co., MD. (This area was called "Great Choptank Hundred" earlier). Towns is this area are Preston, Harmony, Bethlehem, Williston, Concord, Federalsburg, Hynson and American Corner... River District included the area around what is now the Denton and Tuckahoe Neck areas (formerly called "Bridgetown Hundred") and the northern end of the county was "Upper Choptank Hundred" (formerly Choptank Hundred). Both land owners and non-land owners are listed on the 1783 tax assessment (and that is what is was, an assessment of ones land holdings and taxable personal property). Those who owned land can be identified as such by the fact that a property name will be listed after the name of the person taxed. As an example; David Todd, CA (CA= Caroline County), Lower Choptank Hundred (he was not a land owner at this time) Michael Todd, Todds Venture, 496 acres, (tract named "Todds Venture" containing 496 acres), CA, Lower Choptank Hundred Michael Todd, Loyds Forest, pt, (he owned part of "Loyds Forest, no acreage given), CA, Lower Choptank Hundred Michael Todd, Saxton (tract called "Saxton" [actually "Saxton's Support"], no acreage given), CA, Lower Choptank Hundred Nathan Todd, CA, Lower Choptank Hundred (he was not a land owner at this time) The three Michael Todds who owned "Todd's Venture," "Lloyd's Forest" and "Saxton's Support" are all the same individual. In 1778 the state of Maryland conducted a "census" (only free males aged 18 and over) to determine who had and had not signed the "Oath of Fidelity," and as far as I know only three counties enumerations have survived (Caroline, Charles & Queen Anne's). The Oath of Fidelity was basically a renunciation of British rule and one swore their allegiance to the American cause. Owners of land in Maryland during the colonial period had to pay "rent" to the Lords Baltimore every year at a specific time after the Revolution the owner paid a "tax" to the state. Really just a change in the names. The Delaware Genealogical Society has published a very good book "Delaware- 1782 Tax Assessment and Census Lists" by Nelson, Nelson, Doherty, Richards & Richards. I highly recommend it. http://delgensoc.org/ click on "Publications." Parker (also a descendant of Henry Stubbs) http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~carolines/ ----- Original Message ----- From: "Genevieve" <genev@tisd.net> To: <MDCAROLI-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Friday, July 12, 2002 12:46 PM Subject: [MDCAROLI] 1783 Tax Assessment - Fidelity Oath > Historians - please help. > > I found this 1783 Tax Assessment on the Maryland Archives. It lists > three District Hundreds - UPPER Choptank District, RIVER District and > LOWER Choptank District. I found my ancestor, Henry Stubbs (great X 4 > grandfather) in LOWER CHOPTANKk HUNDRED, along with Collisons, Framptons > and Wheelers who married into my families. > > My questions: > (1) WHERE is the LOWER Choptank District IN RELATION TO TOWNS TODAY? > > I would call "UPPER river" as meaning closer to the river SOURCE; "LOWER > River" would be near the OUTLET. That would mean to me: UPPER would be > Greensboro, Goldsboro, Henderson area. RIVER hundred would be Denton > area: LOWER would be Federalsburg and Preston area. > > But I have other reasons to suspect that my above named ancestors were > in the Greensboro area. > Please help me with the geography. > > (2) WHO were listed - land owners only, (some are stated as "tenants") ? > > (3) The Maryland Archives site calls it the "ASSESSMENT OF 1783". > Ancestry.com refers to it as "FIDELITY OATH". > So my questions: Who ordered this "event"? the Colony/State of Maryland? > Was it a means of taxing Marylanders of the colony/state of Maryland? > Was it a means of asking residents to "pledge fidelity" to the new > "state"? In 1783 the Revolutionary War with England had been negotiated. > (Declaration of Independence was in 1776. I think the Revolutionary War > lasted for six years - 1776 to 1782. - Historians, correct me if I am > wrong.) > > (4) Did other states have a comparable "Assessment", which would be a > Pre-1790 Census. > > As I research my families, I realize how little HISTORY I learned. So > now I am filling in the gaps. > > Genevieve Bundy > > > > > ============================== > To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: > http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237 > >